Course Overview Welcome to your first college class. This syllabus is designed to help us duplicate the rigor and content of a college Freshman English course and to fulfill the curricular requirements set forth in The College Board’s AP English Course Description. As in any college English course, we will spend much of our time analyzing, both in writing and in discussion, a wide variety of literary genres and time periods. What you may find particularly challenging about this class is that you must not only expand your knowledge of varied literary devices and techniques, but you must proceed to a higher level of analysis and articulate how such techniques further an author’s purpose or theme. In other words, no longer will you be content (well you may, but it won’t get you far….) simply to say “this poet used an erratic rhyme scheme.” Instead, you will dig deeper and explain how that discordant rhyme pattern echoes the speaker’s cynicism. At all times, your job is to determine how technique furthers purpose, and then to articulate your reasoning to others.
Curriculum Overview From a content standpoint, our curriculum will involve the following areas, roughly divided into four quarters. Depending on class strengths and weaknesses, we may spend more or less time on a particular area.
Quarter One: The Short Story--Writing About Prose
Summer Reading In-depth Analysis- See Appendix A
Short Story Bootcamp: Elements of Fiction - See Appendix B Text: Roberts, Edgar J., and H. Jacobs, eds. Literature: Introduction to Reading and Writing. Sixth Edition. 2001. Prentice-Hall, Inc. New Jersey.
Short Story Bootcamp involves reading across continents, centuries, genders, and genres in order to immerse you in interpreting and writing about challenging prose. In addition to close study of these works, you will read about how to construct interpretive essays that skillfully incorporate discussions of plot, structure, characterization, point of view, setting, tone, style, and theme. We will also be reviewing model essays from our textbook and from your peers.
Biblical Allusions - Our literary review of biblical excerpts assigned over the summer will assist you in recognizing and drawing thematic meaning from the myriad of allusions contained in most Western works.
Quarter Two: The Dramatic Vision
We will study four plays this quarter - three tragedies and a comedy. - See Appendix C for a detailed breakdown. We will also incorporate the required EGHS American Experience unit.
Quarter Three: Poetry Bootcamp See Appendix D for a detailed breakdown. This unit will involve a cross-section of British and American poets ranging from the Renaissance through yesterday. For outside reading, you will select a favorite poet and develop an in-depth study of his or her work.
Quarter Four: The Play’s the Thing In quarter four, we will read three versions of Hamlet from three different perspectives: Shakespeare’s original play, Hamlet, British playwright Tom Stoppard’s 1967 play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, and American writer John Updike’s 2000 play Gertrude and Claudius. We will also spend time on direct AP exam review and exam practice.
* Grading: There are four categories of skills on which this class will focus, and your grade will be based on your progress in these categories:
Writing: 30%
Reading: 20%
Language (Grammar/Style): 25%
Speaking and Listening: 25%
Each category will have several assessments during each quarter, and the categories are explained a bit further, below. * Writing Assignments
Summer Reading Analysis These groups will create in-depth, online study guides for our summer reading assignments, focusing on explaining the major meanings in each text. See Appendix _A_ for assignment.
Reader Response Notes and Freewrites In order to foster familiarity and comfort with written analysis of new readings, you will often be asked to write short, non-graded responses in connection with your reading assignment. Such assignments are designed to help you pull personal meaning from the texts and aid you in contributing more thoroughly to discussions.
Mini-Skill Writing Assignments These are designed to focus on particular skills with which the class is having difficulty--things like repetitive diction or syntax, comma use, appropriate topic sentences, paragraph clinchers, quote weaving, etc.
Mad 40s and Rewrites These assignments will comprise the bulk of your written work in this class. Mad 40s will require you to respond to a text at a deeper level than you may be accustomed to, in that such essays must synthesise an in-depth analysis of both authorial technique and purpose. You will be expected to utilize specific, textual detail in supporting your analysis, and your essays will be graded using a rubric that is virtually identical to that used by the readers of your AP Exam.
Self-Directed Writing Plan Based on the strengths and weaknesses of your Mad 40s, as assessed by me, you, or your classmates, you will be expected to create a Self-Directed Writing Plan (see Appendix E) and use that plan to inform and develop your writing. Your rewritten essays in the Improvement Plan will then be submitted for grading.
Language Skills - Grammar and Style College writing, and the AP exam, demand mastery over American language and style rules. Therefore, this aspect of English will be studied frequently and assessed separately, both in focused quizzes and as a separate grade in every written assignment. In other words, every writing you turn in will be graded for content AND separately for language.
Mini-Skills Review For the first two quarters of the year, we will do a brief grammar/style lesson at the beginning of class most days of the week. Either I or a classmate will present the lesson, which will emphasize vocabulary (SAT words, literary terms, transition words, active verbs, etc), grammar, or style. Each assignment will take only about ten minutes, and you should demonstrate mastery of such assignments by applying the learning in your writing.
A Word About Speaking and Listening A major component of this class’s success consists of meaningful class participation from every single member. Clear writing is improved by clear thinking and communication, and there is no better way to train your brain than to engage in discourse with your peers. The skills you develop in thinking aloud about a passage or hammering out an idea with others will translate into crisper, more persuasive writing. See the Speaking and Listening Rubric at Appendix F.
Late Work and Absences Assignments must be submitted on their due dates, regardless of your presence in school. Work not submitted on time will reduce the grade on the assignment by 10% per day. Moreover, failing to bring your draft work will negatively impact your speaking and listening grade, as you will be coming to discussions unprepared.
In a discussion-based course like this, your presence in class every day is crucial. We cannot recreate our discourse for you, and that discourse is designed to develop quick, logical thinking that will translate into stronger Mad 40s. Please keep your absences to a minimum. After an absence, please talk to a classmate about missed assignments and then speak to me about deadlines for making them up.
Plagiarism and Cheating All work will be uploaded regularly to Turnitin, and you will have an opportunity to review your drafts to ensure you haven’t inadvertently used someone else’s ideas without proper credit. Submitting work to me or to our class website that is not your own will result in a permanent zero on the assignment, notice to your guidance file, and possible referral to the academic dishonesty board. Plagiarism includes failing to give credit to the actual author in the work you’ve submitted, EVEN IF YOU HAVE PERMISSION TO USE THE WORK. In other words, don’t recycle your older brother’s friend’s paper, even if he has said you could. If you didn’t write it or think of it on your own, and you failed to give credit, then you’re engaging in academic dishonesty.
If you cheat on an assignment, test, or quiz, through providing answers to others or by obtaining answers unfairly, you will be subject to the same penalties above.
AP Exam Overview The AP Exam consists of two parts: 1. The Multiple Choice portion, which is comprised of 55 questions that must be answered in 60 minutes. It is worth 45% of your AP exam score.
2. The essay portion, which is comprised of three essay responses (interpretation of a prose piece, interpretation of a poem, and interpretation of an open question). You will be given two hours to read the material and respond in writing to all three questions; this portion is worth 55% of your exam score.
AP Exam Dates 2015 -I have included the entire AP Exam schedule for 2015, below. Our AP English Literature exam is highlighted in bold:
Week 1
Morning Session 8 a.m.
Afternoon Session 12 noon
Monday, May 4
Chemistry Environmental Science
Psychology
Tuesday, May 5
Calculus AB Calculus BC
Chinese Language and Culture Seminar
Wednesday, May 6
English Literature and Composition
Japanese Language and Culture Physics 1: Algebra-Based
Thursday, May 7
Computer Science A Spanish Language and Culture
Art History Physiscs 2: Algebra-Based
Friday, May 8
German Language and Composition United States History
European History
Studio Art - last day for Coordinators to submit digital portfolios (by 8 p.m. EDT) and to gather 2-D Design and Drawing students for the physical portfolio assembly.
Week 2
Morning Session 8 a.m.
Afternoon Session 12 noon
Afternoon Session 2 p.m.
Monday, May 11
Biology Music Theory
Physics C: Mechanics
Physics C: Electricity and Magnetism
Tuesday, May 12
United States Government and Politics
French Language and Culture Spanish Literature and Culture
Wednesday, May 13
English Language and Composition
Statistics
Thursday, May 14
Comparative Government and Politics World History
Italian Language and Culture Macroeconomics
Friday, May 15
Human Geography Microeconomics
Latin
Appendix A
AP ENGLISH LITERATURESummer Reading: In-depth Analysis
Overview We will divide into several Analysis groups in order to prepare focused study guides for each summer reading work. Preparation of the guides will make you intimately familiar with the work to which you are assigned. In the Spring, you will be expected to use the Study Guides for all works and take short answer exams as a review prior to the AP Exam in May.
The third question on the AP Literature exam is an “open” question that asks you to draw your conclusion from some work of literary merit you’ve read in your lifetime. Thus, it is vitally important that, going into the exam, you know four or five works so well that you can write about them cold and without the books in front of you. Ideally, you will recall powerful snippets of language and dialogue that will help your response come alive. These analysis groups are designed to help you do that.
Format and Work Product Because we read so much in AP already, and everyone in class has already read the works, our study guides should be concise AND visual.
Where I’ve asked for visual images, please be thoughtful in your choices; when you’re stressed out on the day of the AP exam and your brain freezes over details, a picture or graph popping into your head can often open the logjam.
All required components must be built on a weebly website that will be linked to our AP English site. You may build the site using a google presentation, movenote, traditional text, or any other format you see fit.
Required Elements 1. Critical Commentary Analysis - find two authoritative literary criticisms regarding your work, preferably ones that can be linked on your webpage. Every group member should do a close reading of the articles, as evidenced by appropriate highlighting and notes in the margin of the group member’s copy. (You can try using Scrible.com/student for this purpose; otherwise, you will need to provide me a hard copy) 2. Critical Commentary Summary- as a group, create a concise summary of the two criticisms. 3. Character Crib Sheet: For every character, provide a symbol appropriate to the character, and create a chart depicting up to three personality traits for each character, along with quote nuggets evidencing such traits. 4. Symbolism and Theme: Create a chart of each major symbol and identify the theme that accompanies the symbol. 5. Literary Devices: Discuss any other major literary device that plays a significant role in furthering the work’s meaning. 6. Setting: Using images and a brief commentary, depict the significance of the work’s physical and chronological setting.
Grading: As a class, we will negotiate which grading categories and weights to give this assignment. We will also decide which standards are addressed as you get into the work.
Appendix B AP English LiteratureElements of Fiction Boot Camp
Following our Summer Reading work, we will begin this course with an intense, six-week period in which we review the major elements of fiction, read 15-20 short stories, and write several Mad 40s. Readings are from our textbook: Roberts, Edgar J., and H. Jacobs, eds. Literature: Introduction to Reading and Writing. Sixth Edition, 2001, Prentice-Hall, Inc. New Jersey.
Week of
Assignments
September 22
Fiction Overview: 51-63 O’Brien: “The Things They Carried” p. 77 Williams: “Taking Care”
September 29
Plot and Structure: p. 109-114 Writing re Plot: p. 161-168 Kinkaid: “What I Have Been…” p. 148-149 Characterization: p. 174-176 Cather: “Paul’s Case” - p. 177-190 Tan: “Two Kinds” p. 226-233 “Writing About Characters” p. 234-238
End of 9.29 Week
Mad 40 Plot, Structure, Characterization
October 6
Point of View: p. 244-249 Bierce: “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge Jackson: “The Lottery” p. 268-273 Writing About Point of View: 278-284 Setting: p. 285-290 Greenberg: “And Sarah Laughed” p. 323-331 Writing About Setting: p. 335-339
October 13
Style: p. 340-347 O’Connor: “First Confession” p. 360-365 Updike: “A&P” p. 369-373 Writing About Style: p. 375-379
End of 10.13 Week
Mad 40 on Point of View, Style, Setting
Week of October 20
Tone: p. 380-386 Forster: “The Point of It” p. 607 Chopin: “The Story of an Hour” p. 393-395
Week of October 28
Symbolism and Allegory p. 425-431 Aesop: “The Fox and the Grapes” p. 431 “The Myth of Atalanta” p. 432-433 Hawthorne: “Young Goodman Brown” p. 436-445 St. Luke “The Parable of the Prodigal Son” p. 445-447 Writing About Symbolism or Allegory: p. 456-462
End of 10.28 Week
Mad 40: Tone, Symbolism, Allegory
Week of November 3
Idea or Theme: p. 463-469 Writing About Theme: p. 516-521
Appendix C The Dramatic Vision Review Most of you have an intimate knowledge of drama in the form of tragedies--you’ve studied Julius Caesar, The Merchant of Venice, and perhaps Romeo and Juliet. Some of you have read the Theban plays during Sophomore year. Therefore, we will conduct only a brief review of the nature of tragedy itself. However, I suspect most of you will need an in-depth refresher regarding writing about drama, and you will be especially confused regarding how to approach writing about comedic drama. This unit is designed to address those issues; depending on class needs, we may revise the focus set forth below.
Week of
The Dramatic Vision p. 1223-1236 Writing About Drama p. 1277 Special Topics p. 1284
Week of
Tragedy Origins: p. 1287 Writing About Tragedy: p. 1523 Essay About a Problem: p. 1524 Sample Student Essays: p. 1527, 1531
Week of
Death of a Salesman Miller
Handout regarding “The American Dream”
Handout regarding use of time in fiction
Mad 40 (focus on time)
Week of
The Crucible: American Experience Unit Mad 40 regarding setting
Week of
The Comic Vision in Drama Origins of Comedy: p. 1535 Comic patterns, characters, language p. 1538 Types of Comedy: p. 1540 Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest
Week of
Mad 40 regarding comedic technique
Outside Reading: Macbeth APPENDIX D AP English Literature Elements of Poetry Boot camp
This unit is an intensive six-week review of poetry. As we’ve discussed, one of the three essay questions (55% of your AP exam grade) presents you with a poem you’ve likely never read before and expects you to read, analyze, and write about that poem, all in forty minutes or less. Poetry sometimes intimidates students more so than prose, simply because poetry can be so symbolic. If you miss the symbolism, you can lose the author’s intent altogether. Of course, in non-testing circumstances, we may not care what the author’s intent is--we expect to get out of poetry whatever we wish. But, before we can have the luxury of our own convictions, we must first know enough to understand the author’s convictions. This boot camp is designed to help you move beyond any lack of confidence you may feel and allow you to dissect and analyze with authority. It is extremely important that you read all assignments, including assignments about writing, and that you come to class prepared for discussions.
Week of
Poetry Overview: p. 661-672 “Hope,” p. 661 “Schoolsville,” Collins, p. 663 “Here A Pretty…” (Herrick) p. 664 “Because I Could Not Stop…” p. 671 “Stopping By….” (Frost) p. 673 “The Man He….” (Hardy) p. 673 “I Heard a Fly Buzz…” p. 1071
Week of
Character and Setting in Poetry: p. 686-693 “Western Wind” p. 687 “Bonny George” p. 688 “Drink to Me” (Jonson) p. 690 “London” (Blake) p. 693 ‘My Last Duchess (Browning) p. 695 “Elegy in a Country…” p. 698 “The Ruined Maid” (Hardy) p. 702 “Channel Firing” “Hardy) p. 703 “Childhood” (Stanton) p. 710 “A Blessing” (Wright) p. 711 Writing About Character and Setting p. 712-717
End of Week
Mad 40 on Character/Setting in Poetry
Week of
Diction and Syntax in Poetry: p. 719-728 “The Naked and the Nude” p. 726 “The Lamb” (Blake) p. 728 “Jabberwocky” p. 730 Holy Sonnet 14 (Donne) p. 731 “Of Being” (Levertov) p. 736 “Naming of Parts” (Reed) p. 736 “Richard Cory” (Robinson) p. 737 “Dolor” (Roethke) p. 738 ‘I think continually…” p. 739 “Eating Poetry” (Strand) p. 740 Writing About Diction and Syntax p. 741-745
Week of
Imagery p. 746-754 “Anthem for a Doomed Youth” (Owen) p. 750 “The Fish” (Bishop) p. 751 “Tyger” (Blake) p. 754 “I Know I’m Not…” (Durem) p. 758 “Preludes” (Eliot) p. 759 “The Pulley” (Herbert) p. 761 “A Time Past” (Levertov) p. 763 “It’s Only Rock and Roll…” (Wojahn) p. 768 Writing About Imagery p. 768-770
Mad 40
Diction, Syntax, Imagery
Week of
Figures of Speech p. 774-783 “Eyes That I Last Saw…” p. 786 “Harlem” (Hughes) p. 787 “Portrait of a Figure…” p. 789 “Conjoined” (Minty) p. 790 “Exit, Pursued by…” p. 791 “Metaphors” (Plath) p. 793 “Looking at Each…” p. 794 Writing About Figures of Speech p. 801-804
Week of
Tone: Creation of Attitude p. 808-817 “The First-Rate Wife” p. 808-809 “Dulce et Decorum…” p. 810 “The Workbox” (Hardy) p. 814 “Epigrams…” (Pope) p. 816 “Homage to My Hips” (Clifton) p. 819 “she being Brand/…” p. 819 “Theme for English B” (Hughes) p. 822
Poetry Study (Independent)
Select a favorite poet and write a three-page analysis of some of his or her work. Include MLA Citation and Works Cited page.
Appendix E SELF-DIRECTED WRITING PLAN Background
APPENDIX F CCSS Speaking and Listening Standards Progress - 11/12 Grade Span
Comprehension and Collaboration CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1 Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 11–12 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1a Come to discussions prepared, having read and researched material under study; explicitly draw on that preparation by referring to evidence from texts and other research on the topic or issue to stimulate a thoughtful, well-reasoned exchange of ideas.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1b Work with peers to promote civil, democratic discussions and decision-making, set clear goals and deadlines, and establish individual roles as needed.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1c Propel conversations by posing and responding to questions that probe reasoning and evidence; ensure a hearing for a full range of positions on a topic or issue; clarify, verify, or challenge ideas and conclusions; and promote divergent and creative perspectives.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1d Respond thoughtfully to diverse perspectives; synthesize comments, claims, and evidence made on all sides of an issue; resolve contradictions when possible; and determine what additional information or research is required to deepen the investigation or complete the task.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.2 Integrate multiple sources of information presented in diverse formats and media (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) in order to make informed decisions and solve problems, evaluating the credibility and accuracy of each source and noting any discrepancies among the data.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.3 Evaluate a speaker’s point of view, reasoning, and use of evidence and rhetoric, assessing the stance, premises, links among ideas, word choice, points of emphasis, and tone used.
Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.4 Present information, findings, and supporting evidence, conveying a clear and distinct perspective, such that listeners can follow the line of reasoning, alternative or opposing perspectives are addressed, and the organization, development, substance, and style are appropriate to purpose, audience, and a range of formal and informal tasks.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.5 Make strategic use of digital media (e.g., textual, graphical, audio, visual, and interactive elements) in presentations to enhance understanding of findings, reasoning, and evidence and to add interest.
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.6 Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks, demonstrating a command of formal English when indicated or appropriate. (See grades 11–12 Language standards 1 and 3 here for specific expectations.)
Course Overview
Welcome to your first college class. This syllabus is designed to help us duplicate the rigor and content of a college Freshman English course and to fulfill the curricular requirements set forth in The College Board’s AP English Course Description. As in any college English course, we will spend much of our time analyzing, both in writing and in discussion, a wide variety of literary genres and time periods. What you may find particularly challenging about this class is that you must not only expand your knowledge of varied literary devices and techniques, but you must proceed to a higher level of analysis and articulate how such techniques further an author’s purpose or theme. In other words, no longer will you be content (well you may, but it won’t get you far….) simply to say “this poet used an erratic rhyme scheme.” Instead, you will dig deeper and explain how that discordant rhyme pattern echoes the speaker’s cynicism. At all times, your job is to determine how technique furthers purpose, and then to articulate your reasoning to others.
Curriculum Overview
From a content standpoint, our curriculum will involve the following areas, roughly divided into four quarters. Depending on class strengths and weaknesses, we may spend more or less time on a particular area.
Quarter One: The Short Story--Writing About Prose
Summer Reading In-depth Analysis - See Appendix A
Short Story Bootcamp: Elements of Fiction - See Appendix B
Text: Roberts, Edgar J., and H. Jacobs, eds. Literature: Introduction to Reading and Writing. Sixth Edition. 2001. Prentice-Hall, Inc. New Jersey.
Short Story Bootcamp involves reading across continents, centuries, genders, and genres in order to immerse you in interpreting and writing about challenging prose. In addition to close study of these works, you will read about how to construct interpretive essays that skillfully incorporate discussions of plot, structure, characterization, point of view, setting, tone, style, and theme. We will also be reviewing model essays from our textbook and from your peers.
Biblical Allusions - Our literary review of biblical excerpts assigned over the summer will assist you in recognizing and drawing thematic meaning from the myriad of allusions contained in most Western works.
Quarter Two: The Dramatic Vision
We will study four plays this quarter - three tragedies and a comedy. - See Appendix C for a detailed breakdown. We will also incorporate the required EGHS American Experience unit.
Quarter Three: Poetry Bootcamp
See Appendix D for a detailed breakdown. This unit will involve a cross-section of British and American poets ranging from the Renaissance through yesterday. For outside reading, you will select a favorite poet and develop an in-depth study of his or her work.
Quarter Four: The Play’s the Thing
In quarter four, we will read three versions of Hamlet from three different perspectives: Shakespeare’s original play, Hamlet, British playwright Tom Stoppard’s 1967 play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, and American writer John Updike’s 2000 play Gertrude and Claudius. We will also spend time on direct AP exam review and exam practice.
*
Grading: There are four categories of skills on which this class will focus, and your grade will be based on your progress in these categories:
Each category will have several assessments during each quarter, and the categories are explained a bit further, below.
*
Writing Assignments
Summer Reading Analysis
These groups will create in-depth, online study guides for our summer reading assignments, focusing on explaining the major meanings in each text. See Appendix _A_ for assignment.
Reader Response Notes and Freewrites
In order to foster familiarity and comfort with written analysis of new readings, you will often be asked to write short, non-graded responses in connection with your reading assignment. Such assignments are designed to help you pull personal meaning from the texts and aid you in contributing more thoroughly to discussions.
Mini-Skill Writing Assignments
These are designed to focus on particular skills with which the class is having difficulty--things like repetitive diction or syntax, comma use, appropriate topic sentences, paragraph clinchers, quote weaving, etc.
Mad 40s and Rewrites
These assignments will comprise the bulk of your written work in this class. Mad 40s will require you to respond to a text at a deeper level than you may be accustomed to, in that such essays must synthesise an in-depth analysis of both authorial technique and purpose. You will be expected to utilize specific, textual detail in supporting your analysis, and your essays will be graded using a rubric that is virtually identical to that used by the readers of your AP Exam.
Self-Directed Writing Plan
Based on the strengths and weaknesses of your Mad 40s, as assessed by me, you, or your classmates, you will be expected to create a Self-Directed Writing Plan (see Appendix E) and use that plan to inform and develop your writing. Your rewritten essays in the Improvement Plan will then be submitted for grading.
Language Skills - Grammar and Style
College writing, and the AP exam, demand mastery over American language and style rules. Therefore, this aspect of English will be studied frequently and assessed separately, both in focused quizzes and as a separate grade in every written assignment. In other words, every writing you turn in will be graded for content AND separately for language.
Mini-Skills Review
For the first two quarters of the year, we will do a brief grammar/style lesson at the beginning of class most days of the week. Either I or a classmate will present the lesson, which will emphasize vocabulary (SAT words, literary terms, transition words, active verbs, etc), grammar, or style. Each assignment will take only about ten minutes, and you should demonstrate mastery of such assignments by applying the learning in your writing.
A Word About Speaking and Listening
A major component of this class’s success consists of meaningful class participation from every single member. Clear writing is improved by clear thinking and communication, and there is no better way to train your brain than to engage in discourse with your peers. The skills you develop in thinking aloud about a passage or hammering out an idea with others will translate into crisper, more persuasive writing. See the Speaking and Listening Rubric at Appendix F.
Late Work and Absences
Assignments must be submitted on their due dates, regardless of your presence in school. Work not submitted on time will reduce the grade on the assignment by 10% per day. Moreover, failing to bring your draft work will negatively impact your speaking and listening grade, as you will be coming to discussions unprepared.
In a discussion-based course like this, your presence in class every day is crucial. We cannot recreate our discourse for you, and that discourse is designed to develop quick, logical thinking that will translate into stronger Mad 40s. Please keep your absences to a minimum. After an absence, please talk to a classmate about missed assignments and then speak to me about deadlines for making them up.
Plagiarism and Cheating
All work will be uploaded regularly to Turnitin, and you will have an opportunity to review your drafts to ensure you haven’t inadvertently used someone else’s ideas without proper credit. Submitting work to me or to our class website that is not your own will result in a permanent zero on the assignment, notice to your guidance file, and possible referral to the academic dishonesty board. Plagiarism includes failing to give credit to the actual author in the work you’ve submitted, EVEN IF YOU HAVE PERMISSION TO USE THE WORK. In other words, don’t recycle your older brother’s friend’s paper, even if he has said you could. If you didn’t write it or think of it on your own, and you failed to give credit, then you’re engaging in academic dishonesty.
If you cheat on an assignment, test, or quiz, through providing answers to others or by obtaining answers unfairly, you will be subject to the same penalties above.
AP Exam Overview
The AP Exam consists of two parts:
1. The Multiple Choice portion, which is comprised of 55 questions that must be answered in 60 minutes. It is worth 45% of your AP exam score.
2. The essay portion, which is comprised of three essay responses (interpretation of a prose piece, interpretation of a poem, and interpretation of an open question). You will be given two hours to read the material and respond in writing to all three questions; this portion is worth 55% of your exam score.
AP Exam Dates 2015 - I have included the entire AP Exam schedule for 2015, below. Our AP English Literature exam is highlighted in bold:
Week 1
8 a.m.
12 noon
Environmental Science
Calculus BC
Seminar
Physics 1: Algebra-Based
Spanish Language and Culture
Physiscs 2: Algebra-Based
United States History
Week 2
8 a.m.
12 noon
2 p.m.
Music Theory
Spanish Literature and Culture
World History
Macroeconomics
Microeconomics
Appendix A
AP ENGLISH LITERATURESummer Reading: In-depth Analysis
Overview
We will divide into several Analysis groups in order to prepare focused study guides for each summer reading work. Preparation of the guides will make you intimately familiar with the work to which you are assigned. In the Spring, you will be expected to use the Study Guides for all works and take short answer exams as a review prior to the AP Exam in May.
The third question on the AP Literature exam is an “open” question that asks you to draw your conclusion from some work of literary merit you’ve read in your lifetime. Thus, it is vitally important that, going into the exam, you know four or five works so well that you can write about them cold and without the books in front of you. Ideally, you will recall powerful snippets of language and dialogue that will help your response come alive. These analysis groups are designed to help you do that.
Format and Work Product
Because we read so much in AP already, and everyone in class has already read the works, our study guides should be concise AND visual.
Where I’ve asked for visual images, please be thoughtful in your choices; when you’re stressed out on the day of the AP exam and your brain freezes over details, a picture or graph popping into your head can often open the logjam.
All required components must be built on a weebly website that will be linked to our AP English site. You may build the site using a google presentation, movenote, traditional text, or any other format you see fit.
Required Elements
1. Critical Commentary Analysis - find two authoritative literary criticisms regarding your work, preferably ones that can be linked on your webpage. Every group member should do a close reading of the articles, as evidenced by appropriate highlighting and notes in the margin of the group member’s copy. (You can try using Scrible.com/student for this purpose; otherwise, you will need to provide me a hard copy)
2. Critical Commentary Summary - as a group, create a concise summary of the two criticisms.
3. Character Crib Sheet: For every character, provide a symbol appropriate to the character, and create a chart depicting up to three personality traits for each character, along with quote nuggets evidencing such traits.
4. Symbolism and Theme: Create a chart of each major symbol and identify the theme that accompanies the symbol.
5. Literary Devices: Discuss any other major literary device that plays a significant role in furthering the work’s meaning.
6. Setting: Using images and a brief commentary, depict the significance of the work’s physical and chronological setting.
Grading: As a class, we will negotiate which grading categories and weights to give this assignment. We will also decide which standards are addressed as you get into the work.
Appendix B
AP English LiteratureElements of Fiction Boot Camp
Following our Summer Reading work, we will begin this course with an intense, six-week period in which we review the major elements of fiction, read 15-20 short stories, and write several Mad 40s. Readings are from our textbook: Roberts, Edgar J., and H. Jacobs, eds. Literature: Introduction to Reading and Writing. Sixth Edition, 2001, Prentice-Hall, Inc. New Jersey.
O’Brien: “The Things They Carried” p. 77
Williams: “Taking Care”
Writing re Plot: p. 161-168
Kinkaid: “What I Have Been…” p. 148-149
Characterization: p. 174-176
Cather: “Paul’s Case” - p. 177-190
Tan: “Two Kinds” p. 226-233
“Writing About Characters” p. 234-238
Bierce: “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge
Jackson: “The Lottery” p. 268-273
Writing About Point of View: 278-284
Setting: p. 285-290
Greenberg: “And Sarah Laughed” p. 323-331
Writing About Setting: p. 335-339
O’Connor: “First Confession” p. 360-365
Updike: “A&P” p. 369-373
Writing About Style: p. 375-379
Forster: “The Point of It” p. 607
Chopin: “The Story of an Hour” p. 393-395
Aesop: “The Fox and the Grapes” p. 431
“The Myth of Atalanta” p. 432-433
Hawthorne: “Young Goodman Brown” p. 436-445
St. Luke “The Parable of the Prodigal Son” p. 445-447
Writing About Symbolism or Allegory: p. 456-462
Writing About Theme: p. 516-521
Appendix C
The Dramatic Vision Review
Most of you have an intimate knowledge of drama in the form of tragedies--you’ve studied Julius Caesar, The Merchant of Venice, and perhaps Romeo and Juliet. Some of you have read the Theban plays during Sophomore year. Therefore, we will conduct only a brief review of the nature of tragedy itself. However, I suspect most of you will need an in-depth refresher regarding writing about drama, and you will be especially confused regarding how to approach writing about comedic drama. This unit is designed to address those issues; depending on class needs, we may revise the focus set forth below.
Writing About Drama p. 1277
Special Topics p. 1284
Writing About Tragedy: p. 1523
Essay About a Problem: p. 1524
Sample Student Essays: p. 1527, 1531
Mad 40 regarding setting
Origins of Comedy: p. 1535
Comic patterns, characters, language p. 1538
Types of Comedy: p. 1540
Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest
Outside Reading: Macbeth
APPENDIX D
AP English Literature Elements of Poetry Boot camp
This unit is an intensive six-week review of poetry. As we’ve discussed, one of the three essay questions (55% of your AP exam grade) presents you with a poem you’ve likely never read before and expects you to read, analyze, and write about that poem, all in forty minutes or less. Poetry sometimes intimidates students more so than prose, simply because poetry can be so symbolic. If you miss the symbolism, you can lose the author’s intent altogether. Of course, in non-testing circumstances, we may not care what the author’s intent is--we expect to get out of poetry whatever we wish. But, before we can have the luxury of our own convictions, we must first know enough to understand the author’s convictions. This boot camp is designed to help you move beyond any lack of confidence you may feel and allow you to dissect and analyze with authority. It is extremely important that you read all assignments, including assignments about writing, and that you come to class prepared for discussions.
“Hope,” p. 661
“Schoolsville,” Collins, p. 663
“Here A Pretty…” (Herrick) p. 664
“Because I Could Not Stop…” p. 671
“Stopping By….” (Frost) p. 673
“The Man He….” (Hardy) p. 673
“I Heard a Fly Buzz…” p. 1071
“Western Wind” p. 687
“Bonny George” p. 688
“Drink to Me” (Jonson) p. 690
“London” (Blake) p. 693
‘My Last Duchess (Browning) p. 695
“Elegy in a Country…” p. 698
“The Ruined Maid” (Hardy) p. 702
“Channel Firing” “Hardy) p. 703
“Childhood” (Stanton) p. 710
“A Blessing” (Wright) p. 711
Writing About Character and Setting p. 712-717
“The Naked and the Nude” p. 726
“The Lamb” (Blake) p. 728
“Jabberwocky” p. 730
Holy Sonnet 14 (Donne) p. 731
“Of Being” (Levertov) p. 736
“Naming of Parts” (Reed) p. 736
“Richard Cory” (Robinson) p. 737
“Dolor” (Roethke) p. 738
‘I think continually…” p. 739
“Eating Poetry” (Strand) p. 740
Writing About Diction and Syntax p. 741-745
“Anthem for a Doomed Youth” (Owen) p. 750
“The Fish” (Bishop) p. 751
“Tyger” (Blake) p. 754
“I Know I’m Not…” (Durem) p. 758
“Preludes” (Eliot) p. 759
“The Pulley” (Herbert) p. 761
“A Time Past” (Levertov) p. 763
“It’s Only Rock and Roll…” (Wojahn) p. 768
Writing About Imagery p. 768-770
“Eyes That I Last Saw…” p. 786
“Harlem” (Hughes) p. 787
“Portrait of a Figure…” p. 789
“Conjoined” (Minty) p. 790
“Exit, Pursued by…” p. 791
“Metaphors” (Plath) p. 793
“Looking at Each…” p. 794
Writing About Figures of Speech p. 801-804
“The First-Rate Wife” p. 808-809
“Dulce et Decorum…” p. 810
“The Workbox” (Hardy) p. 814
“Epigrams…” (Pope) p. 816
“Homage to My Hips” (Clifton) p. 819
“she being Brand/…” p. 819
“Theme for English B” (Hughes) p. 822
SELF-DIRECTED WRITING PLAN
Background
APPENDIX F
CCSS Speaking and Listening Standards Progress - 11/12 Grade Span
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.11-12.1 Initiate and participate effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grades 11–12 topics, texts, and issues, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly and persuasively.
Presentation of Knowledge and Ideas